


The Gang Goes to Space

by SingingInTheRaiin



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: Donna Noble Fix-It, F/M, Gen, Happy Ending, Immortal Rose Tyler, Rose and River are good friends, Rose basically adopts the Doctor's daughter, Rose's TARDIS has a working camoflauge filter, The Doctor/Rose Tyler Reunion, Time Travel, obviously
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-31
Updated: 2021-01-31
Packaged: 2021-03-17 13:14:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29100840
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SingingInTheRaiin/pseuds/SingingInTheRaiin
Summary: Rose ends up accidentally picking up a lot of the Doctor's strays, and together they form a family of their own.
Relationships: Eleventh Doctor/Rose Tyler, The Doctor (Doctor Who)/Rose Tyler
Comments: 10
Kudos: 77





	The Gang Goes to Space

Rose grinned at the girl who’d just tossed her a stun gun with impeccable timing. Without even thinking, Rose grabbed the girl’s hand and tugged her down the corridor with a softly shouted, “Run!” 

They eventually made it back to Rose’s TARDIS, which was currently disguised as a broom closet, and quickly ran in and slammed the doors shut. They collapsed into a breathlessly giggling heap right at the entrance, until they’d both managed to calm themselves enough to stand up. The girl paused as she took in her new surroundings. “It’s- well. It’s a nice place you’ve got here. Oh, who am I kidding, she’s gorgeous!”

Rose’s grin grew as she walked over to the console and gently stroked a hand over it. “She’s very pleased to be complimented.” Then she held her hand out, as she realized that they hadn’t exactly had time to introduce themselves as they were running for their lives. “I’m Rose.”

“Jenny.” 

Rose started flipping switches, then paused to look at Jenny again. She wasn’t sure exactly why, but there was something strangely familiar about the girl. “Well, Jenny, if you tell me where you parked your ship, I can get you back to it quick enough. Or…” 

She trailed off, leaving Jenny to eagerly ask, “Or what?”

“Or we could go anywhere. Any time,” Rose offered up the same temptation that had once drawn her away from her ordinary life. It brought up memories of her first Doctor, but she quickly pushed those away. If there was one thing she’d learned in all these years, it was that it never did any good to dwell on the past. Especially not when one had a time machine. “All of time and space at your fingertips, Jenny, and you could still be back here in less than five minutes. What do you say? Where would you want to go first?” 

,,,

Rose had never truly understood it, no matter how many times the Doctor had explained it to her, but now she got it. She understood why all this traveling was so much better when one wasn’t alone. And it helped that Jenny was particularly brilliant. Perhaps a bit too prone to violence as soon as a situation started looking grim, but she was clever and compassionate and she did love to run. And there were times when Jenny’s sense of humor reminded Rose so much of the Doctor that she couldn’t help but smile fondly. They made a good pair, and when months passed without Jenny ever making mention of wanting to go home, Rose didn’t bring it up either.

The last thing they were expecting, considering the overwhelming size of the universe, was to encounter someone who knocked on the front door of the TARDIS as soon as it landed. “Doctor, when did you fix the camouflage feature? I thought…” She trailed off as the doors opened and Jenny and Rose stepped out. There was no one else with them. The stranger furrowed her eyebrows. “Doctor? I knew you’d be blonde someday, but I wasn’t expecting to ever meet you.”

Jenny’s eyes widened as she stared at the stranger. “You know the Doctor?”

That made Rose blink in surprise as she looked at her companion. “ _ You  _ know the Doctor?” Then she reached up to lightly smack herself in the forehead. “Oh, I’m such an idiot. You’re his daughter, aren’t you? From Messaline? I thought you were dead. That’s what he told me, anyways.”

Jenny shrugged one shoulder. “I think I sorta… did? But then I woke up and everyone was already gone, so I decided to just take off on my own. But wait, how do you even know about me?” Then she turned back to the stranger. “And how do you…?”

“I’ll make tea,” Rose announced. “You can never go wrong with tea for a strange conversation.” It was a lesson she’d learned well from Jackie Tyler. With that, she ushered the other two blondes onboard and to the kitchen.

,,,

“It’s a small world after all,” River sang with a wry smile once all three of them had finished sharing as much as they were willing to of their time with the Doctor. (Rose knew that River had kept a lot to herself, but Rose couldn’t blame the woman when she’d done the same). 

Rose snorted. “Honestly, with how much traveling the Doctor’s done, it’s probably a miracle that we’ve never bumped into other pals of his sooner.” Then she sighed and leaned back in her seat. “I’m not even sure if I want to know the answer, but… did he ever talk about me?”

The apologetic look on River’s face was enough of an answer to that one. “I’m not sure if it helps, but I’m pretty sure that your room is still on his TARDIS. I’ve never been inside of course, since the door has always been firmly locked, but it’s a wooden door with a rose carved on it. I was always quite curious about it, but the one time I dared to ask the Doctor, he ditched me on Alcam VII for a week. So even if he’s never mentioned you, I don’t think he’s forgotten you.”

She didn’t want it to, but knowing that actually did help, at least a little. It’s not as though Rose had truly expected for him to keep his promise to tell his future companions about her. She knew him too well for that. He would always be the man rushing onwards because he couldn’t bear the idea of looking back for even a second. 

Jenny looked back and forth between Rose and River with uncertainty. “Aren’t you two going to fight, or something?”

River arched one eyebrow, though she didn’t speak until after taking a long sip of her tea. “Now why on earth would we do that?”

“Well… didn’t you both say you’re married to him? So wouldn’t that make you rivals or something?”

Rose fondly thought back to the first time she’d met Sarah Jane, and how they’d been at each other’s throats immediately, only to quickly bond over their love of the Doctor instead. It was strange to think back to so long ago. She’d been so young and naive then. She let out a soft chuckle at the memories. “Nah, we’re far too old and dignified for that.”

River grinned. “You know, if you’re even half as old as I’m assuming you are, then you are looking quite good for your age.”

“Oh?”

“In that ‘attractive PTA mum who had her kids young and bounced back quickly’ kind of way.”

Rose let out a surprised laugh at that description, then shot River the cheesiest smile she could manage. “You’re not looking too bad yourself, you know.”

The three of them chatted about mundane things for a little while longer, until eventually River stretched her arms up over her head until her shoulders let out satisfying cracking noises, then slowly stood up. “I suppose I should be on my way now. I was hoping to come across the Doctor.”

“I could give you a lift,” Rose offered. “I can assure you that no matter where or when it is, it won’t be out of our way.” 

When River hesitated for a moment, Jenny was the one to add, “Although we’re sure to find ourselves at all kinds of out of the way places along the way.”

“Well, I could hardly say no to that.” River plopped back down into her seat. “Just a few little stops, though. I wouldn’t want to overstay my welcome.”

,,,

River had been onboard for nearly a year before they encountered someone she recognized. The three blondes had just been in the middle of strolling down the idyllic little street with their ice-cream cones when River suddenly froze. Rose turned to see what River was looking at, but didn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Just a few other families taking advantage of the lovely afternoon.

River didn’t say anything for several long seconds, then she abruptly shoved her ice-cream into Rose’s hand and hurried across the street towards one of the random families, made up of a happy looking couple and a boy who looked to be in his late teens. “Mum?”

Rose and Jenny exchanged a confused look with each other, then went back to watching what was going on. The red-headed woman looked up in surprise, then her eyes widened as well when she spotted River. “River? What are you-? Is the Doctor-? I thought he couldn’t land here anymore?”

“Well that was technically nearly twenty years ago, right? But no, I’m not here with the Doctor.” River glanced back at her two companions, then waved for them to come over. “Let me introduce you.”

They all went back to the Williams household after some brief introductions, where Amy and Rory poured them all some coffee and set out a little tray of cookies. “I wonder if I should start believing in coincidences now,” Rose said, only half-joking. “I just happened to be traveling with the daughter of former companions of the Doctor, who have a son that has the same name as my younger brother. I mean, that sounds insane, doesn’t it?”

“Don’t forget the Doctor’s daughter,” Jenny interrupted her conversation with Tony to point out.

Amy looked somewhat wistful as she leaned back in her seat. “All of that traveling was so long ago. Sometimes I almost think that it was all just a dream.”

An idea hit Rose, and she couldn’t help the grin that spread across her face. “You know… there is literally infinite room on the TARDIS, which means there’s always space for a few more. And I just so happen to be a much better driver than the Doctor, which means I can guarantee that I’ll be able to bring you back to within minutes of leaving. You don’t have to, of course, but if you’re feeling up to a trip or two…”

“I can confirm that she is an excellent driver,” River added. “Even better than me.” It was one of the benefits of sharing a heart with her TARDIS’ sister, but Rose didn’t feel the need to mention that part. 

Rory and Amy both seemed surprised by the offer, then they looked at their son. “I don’t know if that’s such a good idea. I mean, of course we’ve told Tony about the Doctor before, but I don’t know that he fully understands just how dangerous it can be. What if something were to happen?”

Jenny leaned over the table to look right in Rory’s eyes. “Come on, I was literally less than a year old when I started traveling with Rose, and I’m doing just fine.” She conveniently left out the part where she’d been born as a fully functioning adult. 

Tony clasped his hands together and looked at his parents pleadingly. “Please? Just for a couple of trips? I promise I won’t let my grades drop at school or anything! Please?”

The married couple exchanged a look that seemed to contain an entire silent conversation within it, then finally turned back to Rose. “Alright,” Amy said, trying to sound reluctant despite the growing look of excitement in her eyes. “I suppose if you’re really that good a driver, then a few trips can’t hurt.” 

While the Williams left to pack their bags, Rose turned to look at River. “Looks like time travel is becoming a family enterprise now.”

“The Doctor would hate it so much.”

“I don’t do domestics!” Rose mocked her first Doctor. Then the three women still sitting at the table all broke out into giggles. Rose’s laughter died down a little, though, as she thought about the Doctor. She could only hope that he’d found more family of his own to travel with, because he didn’t deserve to be alone. But there was nothing more she could do for him, not now. All she could do was focus on being there for the people she traveled with, and silently wish the Doctor well.

,,,

Rose carefully landed the TARDIS, just like she always did, and grinned at her companions. “Today, I want all of you to meet an absolute legend. The woman who saved the universe, and made it possible for my beautiful TARDIS to even exist.” She threw the doors of the TARDIS open and stepped out into a backyard filled with luscious green grass and all kinds of colorful different flowers. There was an iron table with an umbrella sticking up out of the middle to provide some shade, and a middle aged woman sitting at it. Rose grinned as she hurried forward. “Donna Noble!”

Donna lowered the magazine she’d been reading from, and blinked at Rose in confusion. “What-?” She cut herself off as the others emerged from the TARDIS, which looked like a small garden shed. “What on earth-?”

Rose tilted her head. “Ah, I can see it’s been a while, and we did only meet a couple of times, so I wouldn’t be surprised if you don’t really remember me. I’m Rose Tyler. We met when you saved the world, and you were fantastic.”

“Saved the world? What kind of rubbish are you talking about? Who are you people, and what are you doing in my yard?”

It took some effort for Rose to convince Donna not to call the police on them. She told the others to go back to the TARDIS and stay out of the way, not wanting to overwhelm Donna before Rose could even figure out what exactly was going on with the woman. Surely if Donna was part Doctor then surely she should have a better memory than ever, right?

Rose gave Donna a sad look as it became more and more apparent that Donna really didn’t have any clue what Rose was talking about. “You saved the Doctor’s life, and you helped save the universe. I thought maybe you left so that you could settle down and get married, but now I can see that there was something else to it.” She sighed. “Is your grandfather around? I know the Doctor liked him, he might know more about what’s going on.”

Whether it was a sign that some part of Donna did recognize Rose, or just an indication of Donna’s willingness to go along with insanity, she did drive Rose to her mum and grandfather’s home. “I’m pretty sure you’re absolutely looney,” Donna explained, “but I’ll admit that you’ve got me intrigued, space girl.”

Luckily Wilf was home, and though it took him a moment, he did recognize Rose. “You-!” He cut himself off, then frowned. “Donna, why don’t you catch up with your mother? She just got a new haircut that you can discuss.”

Donna rolled her eyes at the very obvious attempt to get her out of the room, but she did go along with it. “Alright. But only because I’m sure it’s going to be that unflattering one that Selena had on in the rags a few weeks back.” 

Once she’d disappeared into the kitchen, Wilf turned to look at Rose. “What are you doing here? The Doctor said… well, I’m sure you know.”

Rose shook her head. “What did the Doctor say?”

Wilf gave her a long look, then sighed. “That Donna can’t remember any of her time with him, and if those memories come back, it would be the end of her. So what are you doing here? Is she in danger?”   


Perhaps there was a reason that there had never been a human-timelord metacrisis before. But Rose wasn’t willing to accept that. She could believe that the Doctor had done what he thought was best, but she also knew that the Doctor was not the all-knowing being that so many people tended to mistake him for. Proof enough could be found in that he’d sent her back to Pete’s world, which she was sure he never would’ve done if he’d had all the facts. And the fact of the matter was that if Rose could survive the time vortex, then who was to say that anything else was impossible? 

“I can’t guarantee anything,” she started slowly, not wanting to get Wilf’s hopes up too much. “But I might be able to help her. I don’t think I’ll be able to return to her the memories she’s already had taken away, at least not without some seriously invasive methods, but there might be other things I could do. Enough that she could at least hear about the Doctor and her past without it causing her harm, and maybe she could even come traveling for a bit if she’s interested.”

Wilf frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. “And what risks come with this help of yours?”

“I won’t lie to you, there are a lot of ways it could go wrong, but I swear to you that I will not let anything happen to your granddaughter if there is anything in my power to prevent it.”

It felt like an eternity passed before he spoke again. “She’s better now than she used to be, now that she’s happy with Shaun. But I remember just how alive she was when she was with the Doctor, and I can’t help wishing to see her like that again. She deserves better, for everything she’s done and gone through.” Another few seconds passed, and then he gave a single determined nod. “If you can give even a little of that back to her, then I think you should.”

“Should what?” Donna asked as she returned to the living room.

Rose gave the woman a friendly smile. Even though she’d only had a few brief opportunities to get to know Donna, she knew all about her from the Doctor’s stories. He’d often described her as being something like a sister to him. And he’d explained that his penchant for gossip definitely came from Donna’s influence. He’d never mentioned the erased memories, but of course that made sense, since her human Doctor would’ve never known about something that happened after they’d been dropped off in the other universe. “How would you feel about going on a bit of an adventure?”

Honestly, it was either incredibly amazing or incredibly something else entirely that Donna agreed to go along with it. They drove back to her house mostly in silence, and then Rose led Donna onboard the TARDIS. The look on Donna’s face was priceless. She was the first person Rose had brought onboard since Jenny who had looked so shocked to see that it was bigger on the inside. (Even Tony Williams had been able to hide most of his surprise, since he’d grown up on stories of the Doctor and the TARDIS). 

Everyone else who was on the ship had the good sense to stay out of the way so that they could avoid overwhelming Donna. There would always be time for introductions later. Rose led Donna to the medbay, which looked essentially like the old Estate flat she’d grown up in, only with a few hospital beds in it. Donna sank down onto the couch, and looked up at Rose expectantly.

The TARDIS needed a few minutes to run all of the scans Rose requested, and when she was done, Rose carefully looked over the results. Then she turned to Donna. “I don’t know if you believe me about your missing memories-”

“Hard not to, what with being inside this gigantic shed,” Donna interrupted.

“Well, I can’t get them back to you without some pretty severe consequences. But I can protect your mind enough that it’ll be safe for you to hear all about them, and to make more fantastic memories going forward. Only if you want to, though.”

Donna narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “Is there a reason that I wouldn’t?”   


“It would involve me going into your head, which would probably feel a bit invasive-”

“Probably?”

Rose sighed. “I’ve never exactly done this before. But I am confident that it’ll go well.” Again, when Donna agreed without too much convincing, Rose couldn’t be sure how much of it was an innate trust that couldn’t be erased with her memories. Regardless, Rose gently put her hands on the sides of Donna’s head, closed her eyes, and hopped in. “Just picture a hallway, and anything you don’t want me to see, put it behind a closed door and I promise I won’t look.” 

Rose moved around easily in Donna’s mind, and stopped when she finally found the door that the Doctor had locked up tight. It was already straining a lot, probably from how much of today could have reminded Donna of the past. Rose very carefully reached inside of herself to tug at the swirling golden power that resided in her. She very rarely tried to touch that power because it scared her, but for Donna’s sake, Rose would do it.

She spread a shimmering gold blanket over the locked door, and carefully sealed it into place. Then she added a few more layers, until there was a solid inch of gold blocking that door. Short of Bad Wolf herself interfering, nothing was going to be able to break through that barrier, which meant Donna was safe to know about her past, even if she could never truly remember it.

Rose pulled out of Donna’s mind, and stumbled back slightly, feeling exhausted. She looked at Donna, who looked like she’d just gotten an energy boost. “I think I need a long nap. But then we’ll talk, okay? And until then, you can meet the others. They all know the Doctor, or know of him, and the stories they could tell you are incredible.” 

Donna blinked a few times, then smiled. “Well I hope that these stories live up to the hype, then.” She got up to leave the medbay, then glanced back at Rose for a moment. “Have a good rest, space girl.” 

,,,

They were having the time of their lives running away from creatures that looked like adorable little kittens, but were telekinetic and could breathe fire. The last thing Rose expected was to stumble across a young woman who looked to be from 21st century Earth. But there was no time to stop and chat, so Rose just grabbed the woman’s arm and offered a friendly grin before shouting, “Run!” 

Once they were safely back on the TARDIS, where Donna could commiserate with the Williams about getting too old for all the running, Rose pulled aside the girl she’d practically kidnapped. She was looking around the interior in amazement, and then finally looked back at Rose. “It’s smaller on the outside.” There was some excitement in her voice, but also something else, something familiar, like she’d seen such a sight before. 

Rose grinned. “Yes, she is. I’m Rose, and this is my TARDIS.” 

When she held out her hand, the girl accepted it. “I’m Clara.” She looked around the console room again, eyes passing over all the others, who were politely trying to pretend they weren’t staring at her. When she turned back to Rose, there was a certain fire in her eyes that filled Rose with delight to see. “You wouldn’t happen to be able to give me a lift, would you?”

,,,

“So I have a question,” Jenny said as she plopped down on the couch next to Rose. Rose made a soft humming noise to show she was listening as she continued to work on the dress she was making. “Since the Doctor’s my dad, and you’re his wife, woulditbealrightifIcalledyoumymum?” The last part came out all in one garbled rush, but Rose was able to understand it without any issue.

She pulled out the needles she’d been carefully holding between her lips and stuck them into the little blue police box pin cushion. Then she turned to look at Jenny and give her full attention. “River’s also the Doctor’s wife,” she pointed out.

Jenny frowned. “Yeah, but she’s different. When I think of her, it’s like older sibling vibes, I think.” When Rose didn’t respond immediately, Jenny’s frown deepened, and she hopped back up to her feet. “Just forget I asked, it’s so awkward, and I didn’t even-”

Rose stood as well, and reached out to take both of Jenny’s hands in her own. “It’s not that I don’t want you to,” she assured the younger woman. “You just took me a bit by surprise, is all. Truthfully, I would be honored to be called your mum.” She could feel her eyes tear up a bit as she pulled Jenny into a hug. 

A long time ago, after Rose had first gotten married to her Doctor, they’d had a discussion about children, but ultimately they had decided that while neither of them were really against the idea, their lives were too hectic and dangerous to bring a child into it, and Rose had put the thought out of mind ever since then. But it seemed fitting now that it would be the Doctor’s daughter, of all people, who would be the first to call her a mother. 

,,,

Despite her longer than average history, Rose found that she was still quite capable of being surprised by people. Even just by the little things, like the fact that Amy and Donna teaming up on anyone made for a most fearsome sight, but their husbands both preferred to sit back and stay out of the way while their wives rampaged. Or the fact that Tony never got tired of buying new shoes from every time and place they went to. Or the fact that River broke the toaster while tinkering with it, but then made it so that the ice dispenser on the freezer door became a toaster instead. Or the fact that Clara and Jenny were constantly teaching each other all kinds of things that they never would’ve learned otherwise.

But somehow, Rose had started to believe that she could no longer be surprised by the big things. Perhaps that was why it felt so out of left field the day she landed the TARDIS and found herself practically ambushed by a man that, while physically unfamiliar, she immediately recognized as the Doctor. 

He stared at Rose in wide-eyed shock, like he couldn’t possibly believe that she was standing before him. “Rose? Is that really you?”

She nodded slowly. “Yeah, ‘course it’s me. But I don’t understand. What are you doing here? Did you detect my TARDIS, or…?”

The Doctor blinked a few times, then shook his head. “I had no idea,” he whispered. “I just came by to pick up a friend.”

Perhaps it should have been more of a surprise then, but it wasn’t. Rose put her hands on her hips and narrowed her eyes slightly. “This friend wouldn’t happen to be Clara Oswald, would it?”

“How did you know that?”

Rose let out a loud laugh. “I think we’ve been parent-trapped!”

The TARDIS, which currently looked like a broom closet to blend in properly in the school, had the door suddenly pop open and Amy’s voice called out, “What’s taking so long? I thought we were going to…” she trailed off when she spotted the Doctor, and he looked at her in shock. “Raggedy man?” 

Rose’s eyes widened, and then she turned back to give her TARDIS a fond look. “I believe that Clara’s not been the only clever one here.” She reached out to take the Doctor’s hands, and even though it wasn’t a body she’d seen before, their hands still seemed to fit together perfectly. “Come on, there’s quite a few people that you’ll probably want to meet.”

The reunion was noisy and cheerful and a little bit sad as the Doctor saw so many faces that he’d never thought he’d see again. Rose watched them all, and then reached over to gently stroke the console. “It’s not what I had planned,” she murmured, “but I suppose you always brought me to exactly where I needed to go. And now you’ve finally brought me home, after all these years.” 

There were still many conversations that needed to had, including Rose’s multitude of reasons for why she’d never sought out the Doctor after returning to this universe, but for now, she made her way over to the Doctor, and slipped her hand in his again. She beamed as she looked out at all these people who had become her family, and found that in that moment, she truly felt happy. 


End file.
